Remnant's Colossi, Chapter I
"Speaking"
"Fairytale"
'Thinking'
Fairy Tales are fickle things, some are completely imaginary, products of the mind, Fiction. Fairy Tales are often regarded as myths, legends, simple stories to capture the imagination of a child. But even the most unlikely stories have elements of reality, some bases of truth. Remnants has a few of these Fairy Tales, The Tale of the Two Brothers, The Shallow Sea, The Girl in the Tower, The Story of the Seasons, and the Story of the Silver-Eyed warriors are among them, but the general populace has no idea of this fact. Only a select few remember.
But there is another Fairy Tale of this sort, forgotten by nearly everyone. References to it disappeared, copies lost, remembrance holding fast in the elders of this world. But what is this Fairy Tale that has been lost to the ages? Why, that would be The Tale of the Colossi, or its more obscured name, The Shadow of the Colossus, derived from an ancient dialect in a long-forgotten text, or its more common name, The Sixteen Guardians.
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"Mama, please? I don't wanna go sleep!" A little girl; no more than five laid in her bed at night, yet was not ready to sleep, pouting at her amused mother.
Giving a sigh and a smile, the mother made her offer, "Alright, how about I read you a story first, then you go to sleep?"
The little girl, pout all but gone from her face, lit up in joy at the offer and quickly agreed, the mother walked over to the dresser and pulled out a book with a old leather binding, the depiction of a creature looking like the combination of an ancient ruin and a minotaur on the cover, holding an equally designed club.
"You promise to go to bed after this?" The mother asked with a small smile on her face. "Promise!" The girl happily agreed, besides, who doesn't like a good story?
The mother opened to the first page, showing a picture of 16 wizard like men around a table. "Before the discovery of dust, both Humanity and Faunus relied on 16 wise protectors. These 'guardians' were scattered across Remnant in order to protect everyone, they did not care for the social standings, or race."
Each time the mother turned the page it depicted one of the guardians, their names, and a picture showing their feats
"Valus the Minotaur; magnificent and fearless, he braved the hordes so the less fortunate did not have to,
Quadratus the Mammoth; as his namesake, he was the immovable wall that the Grimm broke upon,
Gaius the Knight; A true knight of justice, fighting both the Grimm, and for those oppressed by the greed oh Humanity,
Phaedra the Stallion; Fearless and Devout, she never hesitated to rush to someone's aid no matter the distance,
Avion the Bird of Prey; the hunter, she rarely visited her charges, preferring to hunt her enemy in the vast forests and skies,
Barba the Elder; the wise warrior, the eldest among the guardians, longing for the fight, but never hastening it,
Hydrus the Seafarer; one of two guardians to patrol Remnant's seas, making safe the trade routes,
Kuromori the Poisonous; a guardian who preferred to make the Grimm wither before they got near to his charges,
Basaran the Turtle, powerful and armored, this guardian can simply outlast the storm, indomitable and indestructible, the enemy fell before he ever would,
Dirge the Quick-Footed; able to run circles around her enemies and defeat them before they even knew they were in a fight
Celosia the Lion; Fearless and Ruthless, He matches the Grimm's ferocity with his own,
Pelagia the Builder; the guardian who helped build Humanity's defences ever stronger as the threat grew,
Phalanx the Mighty; she was the guardian who mediated the threats of the sky, being as to the Grimm, what they were to us,
Cenobia the Destructive; a guardian who chose the isolation of the world, as his methods of combat were as his title implies,
Argus the Sentry; a guardian who stood defiant against the hordes of hell, only appearing in great times of need, and disappearing as soon as he was finished,
Malus the Citadel, the guardian who held back the nightmares that we never got to see, and were thankful for that lack of sight.
The child continued to listen, captivated by these brave heroes, in her opinion, that faced the oncoming storm and, in their defiance and bravery never faltered. The mother continued.
"As the years continued, the discovery of dust greatly aided Humanity in aiding their guardians and protecting themselves. Though, the guardians' power was still far beyond what dust could ever grant. Eventually, after the walls and kingdoms were formed, the guardians became the first huntsman and huntresses and began training the next generation of heroes. But over time the greed of humanity continued to swell, and in the time of "peace," some, in their thirst for power, looked to the guardians."
The guardians realized this, but it was far too late, the plans and movements of usurpation were already in motion. The greed of humanity could not be allowed to harness this power. . . The consequences would be unimaginable."
"What did the guardians do?" The child asked in both wonder and worry. The mother smiled and responded, "Let me continue the story, and you'll find out," Looking back to the book.
"The guardians decided on a rather unique decision, they gave up their power, and stored a piece of it in sixteen massive creatures, the Colossi. When the humans, driven by their lust for power arrived, they were greeted by the sixteen smug guardians who issued their challenge: Find and Defeat all sixteen colossi, and the power shall be yours."
"Did anyone do it?" The child asked in curiosity and again, slight worry. The mother simply replied, closing the book as the final page had been turned.
"Many tried, but none succeeded, eventually people stopped trying all together, and eventually the Colossi fell into little but myths, and legends." The mother replied, placing the book by her daughter's pillow.
Still believing that the story was reality, the child asked seriously, "Do you think I could find any of the Colossi?"
The mother simply smiled at her daughter's childlike innocence, "It's just a story, they aren't real." The daughter smiled back, in defiance she responded, "I think they're real. . . goodnight mom!"
The mother smiled before kissing her child on the head and walking to the door, "Goodnight, Amber." The mother turned off the light and let the child, Amber fall asleep. Her dreams filled with adventures of the sixteen heroes who in her childlike mind, saved the world.
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Amber often thought back on that night, the story of The Sixteen Guardians still being her favorite even if it was impossible to find anywhere else in the world. In fact, she still had the copy that was read to her as a child in her horse's saddlebag.
Which leads us to the present. Dressed in a white outfit with brown leggings accented by bronze armor mixed with leather, topped off by a green cloak wrapped around her shoulders and the hood pulled over her head.
Her objective was trying to reach Ozpin and Beacon Academy to discuss their next move, while helping anyone in need along the way
Her attention was drawn when she heard the distinct sound of crying further along the road, looking up she saw a small child in a dress next to a fallen bike, her knees pulled into her chest as she cried.
Her heart going out for the girl, she approached by horse then got off before walking towards the child on foot, stopping and crouching when the child flinched. She held out an apple as a sign to show that she meant no harm, smiling nonthreateningly.
The dirt behind the girl moved and Amber's smile instantly fell, sensing an aura with an evil intent. She leapt away, her cloak falling as she did and bringing out her staff, bringing it to its full length.
Where the little girl was crying, was now a young woman about Amber's age with green hair and red eyes, wearing a brown outfit and wielding two revolvers, which she fired at Amber in quick succession.
Amber responded by blocking each round, the sweeping her staff and activating the wind dust, sending a powerful gust at the green haired girl, knocking her back, but it wasn't over, not by a long shot.
The sound of running from her left allowed her to react just in time, bringing up her staff to block a kick from a silver haired young man, sending him away before sending another gust of wind at the green-haired girl to block her.
The silver haired young man landed on a fencepost before his boots went off like shotguns, sending him at Amber. She responded by spinning her staff, aiming the red crystal at him and sending a torrent of flames at him.
When the flames died down, he was still standing there, but could be seen that he had metal prosthetics for legs. His momentum not slowed down, he slammed into Amber and sent her tumbling back. She opened her eyes just in time to see the green haired girl slam into her chest, crushing the ground beneath them before said girl flipped over to her partner.
Amber quickly got to her feet, her aura healing the damage before she accessed her true power, the fight was far from over. Her eyes flared in an angry orange glow as a massive whirlwind made her opponents step back and cover their eyes and glancing at each other worriedly.
Amber slowly rose into the air as she called down a lightning bolt, the two jumping away as she put her assailants on the defensive by calling down more lightning as they did their best to avoid the attack.
Eventually they stopped running and returned fire which was blocked by Amber's shield, doing nothing to her, to the worry of her opponents.
Retaliating, she began to pull leaves from the trees before freezing them to make razor sharp ice blades, sending them hurtling at her opponents. They could do little to dodge and were sent to the ground, bleeding and out of the fight.
However, Amber sensed a third aura entering the fray. Looking in the direction Amber saw another young woman with raven hair and wearing a red dress, wielding two swords and arrows strapped to her back.
She launched a fireball at the new arrival who leapt over it, sending glass spikes at Amber who barely had time to register before they hit and she was sent tumbling to the ground. Slowly raising back up, she saw nothing before all of her opponents simply appeared running at her with alarming speed.
Amber had little time to put up a defense before the red woman struck first with her swords, followed up by the silver man followed yet again by the green woman. Amber blocked and parried, trying to gain distance and think of a strategy.
The thought process was halted when she gasped, seeing the red woman drawing a bow and sending three glass arrows at her which glowed angrily before exploding, Amber having no time to dodge or block. Amber was launched back, gasping in pain and having her aura depleted.
Getting back up in her weakened state, she saw all of her attackers advancing towards her, ready for the kill. Amber grit her teeth in pain as she blasted the woman in red away with a wind gust before shocking the silver haired man with lightning and sending a fireball at the green haired woman.
Amber proceeded to limp over to the original aggressor, who looked up in fear at the sight of the angry Fall Maiden, holding her staff, ready to finish her. But she didn't see the ravenette's smirk as the woman drew her bow with an arrow notched.
Amber jerked forwards, dropping her staff and falling to her knees in pain as an arrow was sticking out of her shoulder. Cinder began to walked towards the injured Maiden while Mercury and Emerald restrained her.
Cinder put on an ornate white glove with runes along it, standing in front of Amber as a beetle like Grimm came out of a small portal.
Amber's eyes widened in terror as she saw and recognized the small creature, her fate was all but sealed.
"No. . . Please!" Amber begged, yet it barely came out as a whisper, Cinder's own evil smirk growing as she saw the Maiden's fear.
Unbeknownst to all of them, the plea reached much further into the forest, Amber's power sending out a sort of distress call.
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Deep in the forest laid an old and undiscovered ruin, moss covering most of it from the centuries of absence of any form of life save the woodland creatures, seemingly nothing out of the ordinary about it.
"No. . . Please!" A weak and faint surge of power washed over the ruins, desperate for any form of aid, and for a few moments, it seemed like it would go unanswered. The forest lay still for what seemed like an eternity before a rumble echoed from the ground and ruins burst a creature resembling a lion, or a kind of bull, coated in dirt and fur, and covered in head to toe by what looked like stone armor adorned with runes and ancient patterns, two glowing blue eyes above its 'teeth', and on either side of the head, two jagged stone horns jutted out, curving back.
Celosia wasn't exactly sure what awakened it, but in the first time in centuries, it felt terror emanating from the forest's edge, and the desire to remain hidden be damned, it was curious to see what was calling for it.
Running at impressive speeds for a creature of stone, he reached the forest's edge, bursting from the trees, the noise akin to a thunderclap as he landed, displacing dirt, and finally seeing the cause of terror.
The Colossi were frequently visited by a wizard who brought them up to speed, should they ever need to move or fight. They knew and recognized the Four Maiden's power and why it had to be protected.
When Celosia saw the sight before him: a beaten Maiden and her three aggressors, all looking at him in utter confusion, except for the Maiden, who held a glimmer of hope in her eyes, he was. . . mad wouldn't quite cover it. Infuriated, that would be the best word to describe Celosia's current mood.
His eyes turned from a neutral blue to an angry red as he released his baritone roar that shook the surrounding forest, his thoughts were shared by Cinders. The fight was FAR from over.
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Amber couldn't believe her eyes, standing before her was a living fairytale character. 'No, this can't be real, this was her eyes playing tricks on her, a last hopeful fiction she was having that she might be ok.'
"What the hell is that?! Some new Grimm?!" The Silver haired man asked in clear worry. His green haired companion shook her head in confusion, unable to answer, the raven haired woman was the most composed, but she held a tight knit frown, this wasn't how it was supposed to go.
'No. . . they can see it-him too, but. . . how?' But inwardly, Amber began to smile, she had always believed this story was true, no matter what anyone said. And she turned out to be right.
Suddenly Celosia's eyes, how could she possibly forget any of their names?, turned an angry orange and he let out a deep roar of fury. 'Maybe. . . maybe there's hope after all' Before her strength started to leave her, before she fell into unconsciousness, she saw Celosia charging with the intent to kill clear in its 'eyes' but none of it was directed at her. Right before her head hit the ground and her eyes closed, she say Celosia shrug off a shotgun blast and slam the silver haired man into the ground with enough force to shatter his weakened aura.
'Just like the heroic images in my book, maybe I will get out of this alive' After that thought everything went blank.
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After the fight, if it could even be called that: The Stone Grimm. . . thing, slammed one of the assailants into the ground before raking his face with its stone claws, shattering his aura and leaving him with a broken ribcage and a bleeding face, he moved on to his next opponent.
The Green haired girl was next, swiftly dodging around the creature and peppering it with her revolvers, which seemed to do little more than anger it, it eventually hit her on one of its horns, shattering her aura.
As it raised up, ready to crush the beaten girl below it, it was hit by a continuous stream of exploding arrows, sending it to its back letting out bellows of pain and anger. The raven haired girl ran at it with incredible speed, raking her sword across its exposed stomach, and leaving it to spray a sort of black smoke for a couple of seconds.
It didn't exactly appreciate this and rolled back to its feet, the woman and the beast circling each other. Studying each other and probing for a weakness, waiting for the other to strike. But the woman had a different idea.
She made a quick dash at the creature, surprising it by launching a volley of explosive arrows at its face, dazing it before doing the same to its back, sending it to the ground. By the time it got back up and turned to face its opponent, she was by her injured companions, herself looking decently battered.
Suddenly all three of them were covered in a black mist, as the beast made its own attack run, only to strike at mist, the aggressors completely gone. However. . .
This left Qrow in an interesting position, a royally pissed off. . . thing, was standing between himself and his current objective. For a moment he was worried he would have to fight the thing as it approached Amber.
But it simply tried to nudge his and wake her up, its eyes returning to the neutral blue they were at before. 'Well, how the hell am I. . . oh' Qrow's thought process was halted as the creature returned to the forest, back to wherever it came from.
Pulling out his phone as he walked towards Amber, he made a call, hoping to avoid this headache he knew he would have to deal with.
"Oz. . . We have a situation, something happened. . ."
Qrow looked around at the battlefield and the forest where the thing came barging through, remembering all the stupid codenames Oz had for these situations in case a third party was listening.
"I think I may have just seen Colossus come into play. . . I'm bringing Amber back, I'm passing this headache along to you."
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All around Remnant, ancient powers were beginning to wake up, waking from an ancient slumber, creatures of stone and fur.
In the deserts of Vacuo, a massive serpent takes to the skies, singing its song in challenge to any Grimm nearby.
Beneath Remnant's Oceans, a Leviathan with an orange glow began its prowl, rearing its head above the waves, near an unfortunate fishing boat, defending it from an attacking Sea Grimm.
Deep in the Mountains of Atlas, a stone knight rose to its head and began its watch.
In the Lush Forests of Mistral, a four legged horse like creature began its watch of the areas.
And in the Emerald Forest of Vale, a mighty bird of prey took to the skies and began her hunt.
These were the first to awaken, and the first who would reinstitute their mark on the world. In two different places, two very different people saw two very different things. An old man striving for peace saw potential allies in his war for freedom. And the Queen of the Grimm saw an extreme potential for power to subvert her enemies and dominate the world.
The Colossi have re-entered the world of Remnant, and their mark to be left will be similar to their name.
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Here's the first chapter of 'Remnant's Colossi' hope you guys enjoyed this, this idea has been floating around in my head ever since I started replaying Shadow of the Colossus. How will Remnant be able to handle these 16 mighty beasts, and their possible human equivalents?
Tenna' ento coiasira Melloneamin, Digi signing off.